School Discipline: Perspectives and Policies in Flux

By Catherine R. Squires & Keith Mayes | January 16, 2017

In spite of the largely local control of U.S. education policy, there are many ways that federal and state governments impact school policies and practices, from what’s taught in the classroom to what’s served in the lunchroom. Given the Republican control of both Congress and the White House, we may see departures from the Obama Administration’s practices that will impact not only federal, but also state-and local education policy. Whether or not Republicans implement proposals to change current policies, they will send strong signals to local school districts about what’s possible and permissible over the next four years.

As the curators for the Education section, we’ll be looking at a host of issues using an intersectional lens, where we examine gender, race, indigeneity, gender and sexuality when attending to policy issues. We invite guest contributors to shed light through their research on a wide range of topics. Here’s a glimpse at one of the topics we’ll be looking at to start:

The Obama Administration highlighted the need for research and urged action to reduce disparities in suspensions in an exit memo published January 15, 2016 and framed this as a civil rights issue. The Trump campaign, in contrast, said nothing about these issues and ran on a “law and order” platform. Relatedly, the incoming president and many of his surrogates have scoffed at science-based evidence. What will that mean for federal programs like the School Climate Transformation Grants, launched by the Department of Education to implement evidence-based interventions to reform school discipline policies and reduce racial disparities? A growing body of research finds that teachers scrutinize students of color more and show implicit bias against students of color of all ages, disciplining them for behaviors that do not elicit punishment for white peers.

We’ll update information on these questions, as well as examine issues surrounding Title IX enforcement, curriculum design, sex education, and guns in schools, after the new leader of the Department of Education takes over in Washington.